Bonanza for OBCs; Government raises creamy layer cap to Rs 8 lakh

Newspatrolling: In what appears to be a populist move, ahead of the crucial 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the government has raised the creamy layer ceiling for Other backward Classes (OBCs) by Rs 2 lakh. Earlier, the creamy layer cap for OBCs was Rs 6 lakh, but now, it has been raised to Rs 8 lakh. What it implies is that OBC families with income of up to Rs 8 lakh will still be able to seek reservation benefits in various fields such as education and government jobs. The government also announced today that it will be setting up a commission to look into the sub-categorization within OBCs. The committee will explore solutions that would enable more equitable distribution of reservation benefits.

The announcements were made today by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. “The proposal is that there will be sub-categorization within the OBC list for the purposes of central government employment. In this connection, the National Commission for Backward Classes had given its recommendation in 2011,” said Jaitley. The minister also pointed out that the recommendations to increase the creamy layer cap were made in 2012-13 and it has now been accepted after inter-ministerial consultations. Jaitley said that the government will work to ensure that maximum sub-classes of OBCs can gain from reservation benefits.